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Discuss the Black Death and its impact on medieval Europe.
 
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During the late Middle Ages, warfare and poor economic conditions had been taking a toll on European people. In 1347, the bubonic plague, or Black Death, added to the misery, destroying 50 percent of its population in less than a century. Originating in Asia, the plague was carried into Europe by flea-bearing black rats infesting the commercial vessels that brought goods to Mediterranean ports. Within two years of its arrival it ravaged much of the Western world. In its early stages, it was transmitted by the bite of either the infected flea or the host rat; in its more severe stages, it was passed on by those infected with the disease. The plague hit hardest in the towns, where the concentration of population and the lack of sanitation made the infestation all the more difficult to contain. Four waves of bubonic plague spread throughout Europe between 1347 and 1375, attacking some European cities several times and nearly wiping out their entire populations.
For survivors of the plague, the aftermath was confusing as they tried to make sense of the horror in religious terms. Some viewed it as the manifestation of God's displeasure with the growing worldliness of contemporary society, while others saw it as a divine warning to all Christians, but especially to the clergy, whose profligacy and moral laxity were ubiquitous. Still others, in a spirit of doubt and inquiry, questioned the very existence of a god who could work such evils on humankind. The questioning of religions and church authority threatened tradition and shook the confidence of medieval Christians. Inevitably, the old medieval regard for death as a welcome release from earthly existence began to give way to a gnawing sense of anxiety and a new self-consciousness. Economically, the population decrease caused a shortage of labor, which in turn created a greater demand for workers. The bargaining power of those who survived the plague was thus improved. In many parts of Europe, workers pressed to raise their status and income and urban growth increased as jobs were readily available.